Good Times Never Seemed So Good
by Cakestar
Summary: Rachel Berry becomes what he expects “home” to feel like.


(**AN:** YES WE'VE BEEN OVER THIS I SUCK AT TITLES AND IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH ANYTHING EXCEPT THAT PUCK SINGS THIS SONG OKAY DON'T MAKE FUN OF ME.)

* * *

Noah Puckerman has this image of what a home really is.

A home is something that everybody needs. It is the place that you are always at your most comfortable. It is also somewhere that you only have to see or think about to be flooded with calm. It is not the kind of place that you are ashamed of, or that you are afraid of showing to other people. It is a place to be proud of.

A home is, essentially, what he expects love might feel like. He doesn't _actually_ know, because he doesn't think that he's ever experienced either, really.

Until the day that he sees Rachel Berry smile, that is.

* * *

It's not for him. It's not for anyone, actually.

Maybe that's what makes it so perfect.

* * *

She smiles more than she can possibly have reason to. He doesn't really understand how she does it, and it annoys him more than a little bit, but a part of him can also admire it. He can say or do just about anything to her, and she stomps off, but she always returns. And somehow, she always returns with her photoshoot smile on her face.

He asks her why.

"I know what I want to do. If I want to achieve my goal, I have to take our Glee club to the next level, but that's impossible to do if there's a great deal of anger between everybody. I have to at least tolerate everybody in the group, even if they _do_ throw things at me."

Being Rachel Berry, of course her reasoning has to do with her future. Everything she's ever done has to do with advancing her future career, because she doesn't know what it's like to not be an adult. She doesn't do anything without reason, which is why it surprises him when she turns around and looks at him again.

"And you just looked like you could use a smile."

* * *

He can't explain his heart beating just a little bit faster.

* * *

When she sings, she always smiles. Even if it's a struggle to make a certain sound through her smile, she smiles. He's noticed that about her. Maybe it's the performer in her just trying to look good. But he thinks it's more because she just likes singing so much that she can't help it, kind of like he can't help it when she sings.

He sits down with her after she's done singing and they talk a little bit.

"Singing is all I know. It's what I'm good at. If I couldn't sing, I don't think I would _be_. It's just such a great way to get everything out so that I can be the best me possible in the end, because it's very hard to dance properly when you've got things on you and weighing you down. Even metaphorical things can be heavy, you know."

He doesn't say anything to that, which might be the only thing that makes them both appreciate this moment so much.

* * *

He realizes that it's not just her smile that makes her an okay girl.

* * *

There are times that not even she can bring herself to smile. At those times, her eyebrows droop a little bit and her eyes get so much bigger. She looks lost and sad and like he sometimes feels, and it doesn't look right on her, so he tries to make it happen as little as possible.

"What's the matter with you? Someone else get the lead?"

He has an odd way of showing concern sometimes, but it's there. He just hopes that she sees it.

"It's Finn."

When she's upset, she doesn't say very much. She doesn't know what to say. So, whatever it is that has to do with Finn, he knows that it's big. And he knows that his loyalties should lie with his best friend, but he's also sure that Finn would understand if he saw her like this.

"Oh."

They sit. They are quiet. He is a little bit uncomfortable, but that feeling goes away when she leans her head on his shoulder and he rubs on her arm a little bit. He doesn't need to know what's wrong. She doesn't need to tell him.

She just needs someone to sit with, and he just needs to be there.

* * *

He feels like he can be himself.

* * *

She stands up and takes his hand to help him, and they walk out together. Her eyes are still sad and her lips are still down, and all he wants is for her to stop looking like that. He takes her face into his hands and he doesn't know what to say, but he tries anyway.

"Look, Rachel, okay. Finn's my bro, but that doesn't mean he doesn't do stupid things, okay? He's a guy, and chicks like to think that we mess up way more than we do, but whatever he did, he didn't mean it, got it? Stop being sad about it. It's probably bad for your vocal chords or something anyway."

She blinks and he moves his hands away, and she smiles.

* * *

It's so much better when she smiles just for him.

* * *

She has never skipped a class before, so he distracts her after lunch until she's fifteen minutes late. When she realizes what he's doing, her cheeks puff up and, even if it's not a smile, she looks almost as good.

"Noah Puckerman," she says, "what is wrong with you? Do you know how bad this is going to be for me? I've never missed a class before! The teacher's probably wondering where I am! What if he thinks I've come down with some deadly illness, and he's so worried about me that he can't focus on his job, and everybody else receives a poor lecture due to my absence?" Her eyes widen. "_Or_ what if he knows I'm not sick, but I just didn't show up, and he thinks I'm a delinquent? What if this goes on my permanent record? I'll never make it big with a black mark like this!"

He doesn't tell her that most big celebrities today have bigger "black marks" than this. Instead, he rolls his eyes and drinks his drink while she lectures him on how irresponsible this is.

"Rachel," he says, "shut up and eat your food."

She opens her mouth but gives up.

* * *

Everything about her mouth is so beautiful that he wants to kiss her lips.

* * *

"I'm Quinn's baby's dad."

He doesn't know what makes him say it, and he panics a little bit for a second. Is she going to hate him? He knows that she loves Finn (even if he doesn't deserve her) and he knows that she will be on Finn's side no matter what, and he knows that she hasn't forgotten everything mean he's ever done to her.

But he feels like he has to tell her, because that's just the kind of thing that she does to him.

She looks up at him and she doesn't say anything. He doesn't know what she's thinking and she doesn't smile, but she doesn't frown, and her eyebrows don't droop. She just looks at him and he sits next to her.

And then she leans on him, and he rubs circles in her arms, and she needs to be there for him when he needs someone to comfort him.

* * *

In this way, Rachel Berry feels like home.

* * *

**AN:** AND THEN THEY HAD SEX.

No. No, they didn't. I lied.

BUT THEY WERE SUPER CUTE FOREVER & EVER & EVER. Especially in tonight's episode. And I promise that they totes got together at the end, just it was off-screen so we don't know. BUT THEY'LL TOTALLY COME BACK NEXT WEEK ALL TOGETHER AND SHIT.

(I'm so good at ruining the moment. Sorry.)

**I totally don't own Glee and stuff, which is probably very good for the rest of the world.**


End file.
